After being cut by the Rams in 2011 and then the Browns in May, Lewis landed with the Lions and will try to give Kellen Moore a run for the third-string quarterback position.

And although Lewis doesn’t have much NFL experience since going undrafted out of Duke in 2010, he said his start in Week 17 last year is giving him an extra boost of confidence entering this season — even if the Browns released him after signing former Michigan State quarterback Brian Hoyer.

In a 24-10 loss to Pittsburgh, Lewis completed 22 of 32 passes for 204 yards; he had a touchdown and an interception. Between that performance and his time in an exhibition game against the Lions last season, the team wanted to give him a shot.

“He ended up starting a game last year and had a pretty good game,” Lions coach Jim Schwartz said. “He became available and we thought he would do a nice job competing for us.”

Lewis, 25, joined the Lions during OTAs and quickly found familiar faces in the locker room. He played against safety Louis Delmas in high school in Miami and defensive end Willie Young in college when Young was at North Carolina State.